The Confederation of North, Central America and the Caribbean Football Association (CONCACAF) announced on Thursday that the Executive Committee has provisionally dismissed President Jeffrey Webb and committee member Eduardo Li, and named Senior Vice President Alfredo Hawit as CONCACAF President.
Webb and Li were named by the U.S. Department of Justice as part of an indictment for racketeering conspiracy and corruption by FIFA officials that was unsealed on Wednesday in Brooklyn, New York.
The CONCACAF Executive Committee also moved on Thursday to appoint a Special Committee "charged with evaluating and sustaining the confederation's business operations of the confederation in the wake of the indictments," according to CONCACAF statement. The Special Committee includes Victor Montagliani, the president of the Canadian Soccer Association; Justino Compean, the president of the Mexican Soccer Federation; and Sunil Gulati, the president of U.S. Soccer Federation.
“While we are profoundly disappointed by the allegations made by authorities that again, CONCACAF has been the victim of fraud, we remain committed to CONCACAF’s goal to develop, promote and manage the game of soccer,” Hawit said in a statement. “We have now taken the appropriate steps to maintain our operations and continue to deliver on our commitments to all of our constituents, including our fans, members, as well as commercial and broadcast partners. We also continue to cooperate with the ongoing investigation by governmental authorities, which have not placed any restrictions on our ongoing activities.”
In addition, the Executive Committee placed General Secretary Enrique Sanz on a leave of absence, effective immediately, and appointed Deputy General Secretary, Ted Howard, as acting General Secretary. Howard will now oversee the administrative day-to-day functions of the confederation.
